Folding bench and table construction



June 1940- R. E. SCHIEBER FOLDING BENCH AND TABLE CONSTRUCTION FiledJuly 5, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 BY WM 7%.

TTORNE Y5.

June 4, 1940. sc 2,203,394

FOLDING BENCH AND TABLE CONSTRUCTION Filed July 5, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2I 2% e /Few A TTORNEYfi June 4, 1940. E. SCHIEBER 2,203,394

FOLDING BENCH AND TABLE CONSTRUCTION Filed July 5, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 557 m *argnvi E C '1 11] l 2 I l l ll INVENTOR fiaieri ff 5vieiel7 ATTORNE Y5.

I Patented June 4, 1940 PATENT OFFICE FOLDING BENCH AND TABLECONSTRUCTION Robert E. Schieber, Detroit, Mich. Application July 5,1938, Serial No. 217,490 6 Claims. (01. 311+1s) This invention relatesto a table and bench structure adapted to be folded into a recess in thewall of a roomwhen not in use; and it embodies certain improvements onand additions to 5 the folding table structure disclosed and claimed inapplicants co-pending application Serial No. 111,562, filed November 19,1936, Patent No. 2,131,675, dated September 2'7, 1939.

In said co-pending application is disclosed a 10 table which may befolded into a wall recess in such a manner that the table top forms theclosure member for the recess.

It is one object of the present: invention to provide a folding table ofthe type mentioned in 15 combination with one or more folding benches ofsimilar character so that the complete unit of table and benches may befolded into a suitable wall-recess or recesses and form the closuremembers thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved and simplifiedleg supporting structure for a table or benchv of the type mentioned,and an improved form of leg folding mechanism.

Another object of the invention is to provide 25 improved means forsecuring a top of a table or bench to a support to facilitate folding ofthe table or bench.

Another object is to provide a folding table or bench adapted to foldinto and from the clo- 30 sure member of the recess, in which the top ofthe table or bench closely flts the recess and in which means areprovided to adjust the top relative to the recess.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following specification, the accompanying drawings and the appendedclaims.

Fig. l is a perspective view of the table and benches folded into asuitable wall recess;

40 Fig. '2 is a perspective view showing the table and benches in theiroperative position;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of one of the benche with parts broken away toshow the interior con-.

struction; 45 Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section taken on the line 4-4partially folded condition;

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectiontaken on the line 4-4 of. Fig. 1 showingthe bench in com- 50 pletely folded condition;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary elevational view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig.4;

Fig. 7 is' a fragmentary sectional View taken on the line 1-1 of Fig. 6;v 1 55 Fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view on an of Fig. 1 of one ofthe benches in a enlarged scale showing the hinge constructionconnecting the bench sections;

Fig. 9 is a transverse sectional view of the bench taken on the line 99of Fig. 3;

Fig. 10 is a vertical section of the latching 5 mechanism at the innerend of the bench taken on the line lit-l0 of Fig. 3; and, I

Fig. 11 is a section taken on the line ll-li of Fig. 10. a

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 and 2 of the 10 drawings it will beseen that in accordance with the present invention there is provided afolding table formed of a pair of sections l0 and ii pivotally securedtogether and a pair of benches operatively associated with the table andlikewise 15 having a pair of top sections l2 and I3 pivotally securedtogether. The table and benches are secured at their inner ends tosuitable recesses l4 and 15, respectively, preferably formed in the wallof a room, into which the table and benches may be folded when not inuse. As best shown in Fig. 1 when the table and benches are folded theouter table top section II and the outer bench sections l3 form theclosure members for. the recesses I4 and i5, respectively, and are ofsuch size that they completely fill the recess openings. It is preferredto provide separate recesses for the table and benches in the mannershown, although it is apparent that if desired a single large recess maybe provided and the '30 table and benches so arranged that theircombined outer sections form a complete closure member therefor.

The particular table structure illustrated in the drawings is identicalto that disclosed in my above 'mentioned co-pending' application towhich reference may be had for further details of construction. It issuflicient to state here that the outer end of the table is supported bya suitable leg structure l6 having floor engaging -40 rollersl'l to theend that the entire weight of the table is supported by the rollers asit is folded into the wall recess. The inner end of the table is securedto the recess'by means including a strut l8 which enables the innersection to swing by a combined rectilinear and rotary movement from ahorizontally operative .position to a vertical position within therecess with the outer edge of the section III adjacent-the top of therecess. Suitable means are provided for folding v the leg structure [6into the plane of the table top section II as the table is folded intothe recess. None of the above mentioned table structure per se relatesto the present-invention and, as will become apparent, the tablestructure incopending application may be identical in con-.

stead of being of the form disclosed in applicant's struction to thenovel folding bench structure hereinafter described, if so desired.

The details of the novel bench structure are best shown in Figs. 3 to11, inclusive, and since the benches are identical in construction thedescription of one will sufllce for both. As shown best in Figs. 3 and 4the bench sections I2 and I3 are provided at their adjacent ends withsuitable hinge brackets 20 and 2I connected by a pintle 22 for pivotallyconnecting the sections together. It will be observed that the hingebrackets are so arranged that the pintle is disposed outwardly from theinner end of the top section I3 in order that it will not project abovethe top section I3 when the latter is folded into.

the recess in the manner shown in Fig. 5. This permits a proportioningof the outer table top to very closely fit the upper edge of the recessopening.

The recess I5 is preferably lined with sheet metal walls 28 and thefront edges of the recesses are provided with finish strips or moldings25. At the bottom of the recess there is provided a reinforcing piece 26which overlies the sides, and rear of the lower portion of the recessand extends partially over the bottom of the recess as best shown inFig. 7. Pivotally secured to the side portions of the pins 21 are a pairof blocks 28; and a T-shaped strut member 29, shown best in Fig. 6, hasits arm 30 journalled in the blocks 28, respectively. A set screw 3|extends through each of the blocks 28 and engages a seat 32 carried bythe member 26 for adjusting the height of the blocks 28. A second setscrew 33 extends through an ear 34 formed on the member 26 and bearsagainst the upper edge of the block 28 for locking it in adjustedposition. The upper end of the strut 29 is provided with a yoke 35 thearms of which are pivotally secured to a suitable bracket 36 by means ofpins 31,- which bracket is carried by the underside of the bench sectionI2 intermediate the ends of the section. The point of connection betweenthe strut 29 and the top section I2 may be placed at any pointintermediate the ends of the section I2 but preferably in abenchconstruction of the type shown in this application it is placedrelatively close to the inner end of the section I2 in the manner bestshown in Figs. 2 and 4.

The inner end of the section I2 of the bench is provided with a bar 38secured thereto by means of a U-shaped element 39 having its legs 40welded orfotherwise permanently secured to the side flanges M of thebench top section. The bar 38 is provided with aligned bores 44 in itsends which carry pins 45 carrying rollers 46 which are adapted to engagebehind a downwardly and outwardly inclined bar or track member 48, bestshown in Hg. 7. The pins 45 are urged outwardly by means of helicalsprings 49 and under the influence of the springs are adapted to projectthrough suitable openings 50 in the sheet metal casing 24 of the recesswhen the bench is in the operative position shown in Fig. 2 formaintaining the inner end of the bench section member 26 by handle 58and the links are secured tot'he lever on opposite sides of the pivot 51with the. result that when the handle is raised the pins 45 will beretracted from the openings 50 by means of the links 55 and theprojections 52. A counterweight is secured to the underside of the benchsection I2 adjacent its inner end to assist in raising the outer end ofthe section I2 when the bench is folded.

The outer end of the bench section I3 is provided with a leg structure62 pivotally secured to the underside of the bench section by means of asuitable bracket 63. The leg structure 52 is provided with a pair ofrollers 64 for engaging the floor and guiding the bench during foldingmovement into the recess. The bench structure is also provided with aleg structure 65 pivotally secured to the pintle 22 of the hingeconnection between the sections I2 and I3. Suitable means are providedfor positively maintaining the legs 62 and 65 in a substantiallyvertical position in all positions of and during movement of the benchinto folded position in order that the legs may fold into the spacebetween the bench sections when the bench is folded and yet will be heldin vertical operative position when the bench is unfolded. This meanscomprises a bar 5'! pivotally connected at its inner end to a bracket 68carried by the inner bench section I2. As best shown in Fig. 8 the pin69 which connects bar 6'! and bracket 68 is positioned inwardly from thepintle 22 forming the hinge connection between the bench sections I2 andI3. The outer end of the bar 61 is provided with a pair of outwardlydiverging bars III which are pivotally secured to the leg structure 62by means of pins II while to the intermediate portion of the bar 61 ispivotally secured a pair of inwardly diverging bars 12 having theirinner ends pivotally secured to the leg structure 65 by means of pins74. As a result of this arrangement when the bench is folded the rotarymovement of pin 69 relative to the hinge pintle 22 will cause the bar 61to move rearwardly with respect to the bench section I3 and fold the legstructures 62 and 65 against the underside of the section I3. Thisfolding movement occurs at such a rate during the movement of the benchsections into the recess that the leg structures 62 and 65 aremaintained in substantially vertical position at all times. Since theleg structure 65 only engages the floor when the bench is in itsoperative position it is not provided with rollers but simply has aresilient foot 15 of rubber or the like.

A suitable latch means I8 of the type disclosed in detail in applicantsco-pending application is provided at the upper end of the recess forlatching the inner bench section against movement outwardly of therecess when the outer bench section I3 is positioned within the recess.This latch automatically releases upon outward swinging movement of thesection I3.

The bench is provided with a key operated lock 19 which controls a pairof locking rods 80 which upon operation of the lock are pro- .iectedthrough suitable openings in the side flanges of the bench top I3 intosuitable openings 82 in the wall of the recess for locking the table infolded position.

One of the important features of the present invention resides in theparticular arrangement of the table guiding track or rail 48. It willstruction of the type disclosed in this applicalower end of the outertion, as 'well as applicant's aforementioned copendingapplication, theweight of the inner top section inwardly of the point of connectionbetween the top section and the supporting strut tends to cause upwardbuckling of the inner and outer sections and thereby assists in thetable folding operation. It is for this reason in part that thesupporting strut I8 on the table '15 connected adjacent the outer end ofthe inner table section III in the manner disclosed in greater detail inthe aforementioned co-pending application. In the case of the bench,however, the reduced height makes it undesirable to connect thesupporting strut 29 to the inner section [2 adjacent its outer endbecause in that event the strut and section- [2 would extend at toosmall an angle with respect to each other to enable the strut to performa satisfactory supporting function. Moreover in the bench theintermediate leg structure 65 supports the outer end of the inner topsection l2 and hence the outer end of that section need not be supporteddirectly by the strut. However, when the strut is connected adjacent theinner end of the section I2 in the manner disclosed herein the amount ofthe inner top section I2 which lies inwardly of its point of connectionwith the strut 29 is relatively small and hence'its buckling effect iscorrespondingly less than in the case of the table. The counterweight 60which is of substantial size and weight very greatly augments thebuckling tendency, but it is found that the.buckling tendency is furtheraugmented to a very great extent if the rail or track 48 extendsdownwardly and outwardly in the manner best shown in Fig. 7. This is dueto the fact that the inner weighted end of the top section l2 tends toswing in an are about pins 31 which connect the strut 29 with thesection i2. Accordingly, if the rail or track 48 extended verticallydownward movements of the. inner end of the section [2 could only occurupon corresponding upward swinging movements of the strut 29. It will beunderstood that even in a table structure of the type disclosed inapplicant's aforementioned co-pending application that the provision ofa counterweight will augment the buckling tendency.

Another important feature of the present invention resides in the meansfor independently adjusting the elevation of the arms 30 of thesupporting strut 29 in a folding table or bench construction of the typehere involved. It is highly advantageous to have the table or bench fitthe wall recess as closely as possible. However, in ordinary buildingconstructions minor variations in the dimensions and form of the wallsand floors are unavoidable and, accordingly, it is necessary from apractical standpoint, if the table is to closely fit the recess, toprovide means for raising either edge independently of the other inorder to secure not only the proper elevating, but the proper alignmentof the table or bench relative to the recess. In addition it will benoted that the rollers 64 on the outer leg structure 62 areindependently adjustable with respect to the leg structure 62 toproperly support the outer top section H with respect to the recess. Anysuitable means for raising the leg structure 62 with respect to therollers 64 may be utilized, such as by threading the stem on each wheelsupporting yoke 86 into the lower end of the leg structure to thedesired degree and locking it in adjusted position by means of a setscrew 91 as shown in Fig. 4. Once the necessary adjustments are made forany given installation all that is necessary is that the inner latchmeans 45 be released to permit the initial buckling action of thesections whereupon the two sections are pushed into the wall. Duringthis movement the sections are guided and supported entirely by theirconnections with the recess and the rollers 64 but they are so guidedthat the table sections will move automatically into the recess.

It will be understood that the herein described and illustrated benchstructure may be utilized in a table by simply increasing its height andthe dimensions of the parts to the necessary degree. Accordingly, in theclaims, except where both a table and a bench are mentioned, theexpression table construction or the like" is intended to apply toeither a table or a bench constructed in the manner specified. Whileonly one form of the invention is shown and described herein it isapparent that variations herein are available within the spirit of theinvention and within the spirit of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a folding table construction or the like, a supporting member, apair of top sections pivoted together for folding movement from aposition in a common plane with their edges in abutment to asubstantially parallel overlapping relationship, the free edge of one.of said sections being connected to said member for swinging movementfrom a horizontal operative position to a vertical inoperative positionwith the edge which is pivoted to the other section uppermost, leg meanspivoted to one of said sections adjacent the pivotally connected edgesof said sections, a second leg means pivoted to the free edge of theouter section for supporting the same, floor engaging rollers on saidsecond leg means, and means for positively maintaining both of said legmeans in a substantially vertical position during folding movement andin all positions of said sections.

2. In a folding table construction or the like. a supporting member, apair of top sections pivoted together for folding movement from aposition in a common plane with their edges in abutment to asubstantially parallel overlapping relationship, a strut pivoted at oneend to said supporting member and at its opposite end to one of the topsections intermediate the free edge and the edge pivoted to the othersection, a downwardly and outwardly directed track on said supportingmember, means adjacent the free edge of said one section for engagingsaid track and holding said section against movement away from saidsupporting member, and means for supporting the free edge of said othersection in all positions thereof.

3. In a folding table construction or the like, a supporting member, apair of top sections pivoted together for folding movement from aposition in a common plane with their edges in abutment to asubstantially parallel overlapping relationship, a strut pivoted at oneend to said supporting member and at its opposite end to one of the topsections intermediate the free edge and the edge pivoted to the othersection, a downwardly directed track on said supporting member, meansadjacent the free edge of said one section for engaging said track andholding said section against movement away from said supporting member,rolling means for supporting the free edge of said other section, and acounter-weight on the inner end of said one section for assisting inupthe free edge of one of said sections to said support for swingingmovement from a. horizontal operative position to a substantiallyvertical inoperative position with the edge connected to the othersection uppermost, said other sectionbeing of such a size that it willsubstantially fill the recess opening and form a closure therefor, andthe axis of the pivotal connection between said sections being disposedbelow and outwardly of the inner end of the other section when saidsections are unfolded whereby the pivotal connecting means will notproject above the other section when the same is folded into the recess.

5. In a folding table construction or the like, a supporting memberhaving a recess, a pair of top sections pivotedtogether for foldingmovement from a position in a common plane with their edges in abutmentto a substantially parallel overlapping relationship, means connectingthe free edge of one of said sections to said support for swingingmovement from a horizontal operative position to a'substantiallyvertical inoperative position with the edge connected to the othersection uppermost, said other section being of such a size that it willsubstantially fill the recess opening and form a closure therefor, saidmeans connecting said one section to the support having adjustingmechanism to' vary the height and angular position of the sections whenfolded to conform to the recess.

6. In a folding table construction or the like,

a supporting member having a recess, a pair of top sections pivotedtogether for folding movement from aposition in a common horizontalplane with their edges in abutment to a substantially vertical andparallel overlapping relationship within said recess, a T-shaped struthaving the ends of its arms pivotaliy secured to said supporting memberon a common horizontal axis and having its stem pivotally secured to theinnermost of the sections between the edge connected to the othersection and the inner edge of the inner section, the axis of said lastmen g tioned pivotal connection being parallel to said horizontal axis,a downwardly directed track on v the supporting member, means adjacentthe inner edge of said innermost section for operatively engaging saidtrack whereby the section is guided for folding movement into a verticalposition within the recess, and independent means for adjusting theelevation of each arm of the T- shaped strut with respect to thesupporting member.

ROBERT E. SCHIEBER.

I C ERII FICATE v OF CORRECTIGN. Patent No. 2,2055%; June l 191p. ROBERTSCHIEBER.

It is hereby ertified that errnr appears in the printed. specificeition"I or the above hmbered patent requiring ctrreption as follnws: Page 1.,first 8, for "September 27, 1959" reaa "September 27 1958- and that thesaid Letters Pt'ent ghoul'd bereaid. with this cOi'recfidn the re fiiWthat the Same may cbnform to the record of'the case in the PatentOff1ce.

Signed and. sealed this 9th day of July,. A. D. 191m.

Henry Van Arsdle', (Seal) Acti gcommigsioner pf Patents.

